Whale watching season opens along the Illawarra coast this Saturday, with humpback whales already being spotted offshore ahead of Shellharbour Wild’s first tours of the year.
The season runs through November, overlapping with the annual migration of an estimated 40,000 humpback whales travelling between Antarctic feeding grounds and warmer breeding waters in Queensland.
Shellharbour Wild Marketing Manager Sonia Tooley said the operator was already seeing whales daily ahead of the season’s official opening.
“We think with so many whales, we will have whales on our first whale cruises heading out,” Ms Tooley said.
UOW Marine Vertebrate Ecology Lab researcher Dr Katharina Peters said the Illawarra’s geography made it one of the best places in NSW to see whales up close, with the continental shelf dropping off close to shore and forcing whales to pass within clear viewing range.
Dr Peters said whale numbers in the population were currently increasing, with up to 40 whales reported in a single spot during peak migration periods in June and July.
Source: UOW Marine Vertebrate Ecology Lab
Feature image: Shellharbour Wild
